Transforming Climate Leadership to Create a Future that Works for Everyone in Zambia
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Transforming Climate Leadership
to Create a Future that Works for
Everyone in Zambia
A White Paper for Transforming Zambia Climate Leadership
UNZA/ALT Foundation Zambia Climate Leadership Transformation (ZCLT) Summit
held virtually on October 13, 14 and 15, 2020Executive Summary & Key Summit Outcomes The intention of this White Paper is threefold: First, to bring to the attention of diverse stakeholders the conversations, discussions, and recommendations that came out of the Zambia Climate Leadership Transformation (ZCLT) Summit. Second, to support these stakeholders in evaluating their engagement with climate leadership, in particular the engagement of women and the youth as leaders for climate action. The first two intentions are pervasive in this Paper. We would like to dwell a while in the third intent, which is to demonstrate how the Zambia Summit fits in the Afro-centric concept of humility that respects indigenous knowledge and the acknowledgment that a lot is unknown and can only emerge through dialogue. The Zambia Summit was the inaugural conversation inside one of three ALT Programs, the Africa Leadership Conversations (ALC). The program aligns to the Zulu concept of “ubuntu” a Nguni Bantu term meaning "humanity." Ubuntu is an African philosophy that places emphasis on being given being through others. It is a form of humanism which can be expressed in the phrases “I am because of who we all are” (“Ubuntu ngumuntu ngabantu” in Zulu language). Staying with Southern Africa, the isiXhosa have the “imbizo,” a gathering, usually called by a traditional leader. Such concepts are found in various tribes and communities in Africa. Researchers have used the imbizo concept as a data generation tool, motivated by the need to develop and utilize research tools and methodologies that are indigenous and reflect the African experience. In Kenya, “Harambee” is a Kiswahili slogan, which means “pulling together” or “working together,” often for a common, or communal good. The Harambee spirit embodies ideals of assistance, joint effort, mutual social responsibility and community self-reliance. Away from Africa, the Māori communities in New Zealand have “Kaupapa” which embodies the principle of collective philosophy. “Kaupapa” refers to the collective vision, aspiration and purpose of the community. It is very similar to the ubuntu, harambee or imbizo in underlining that no single person has the answer to challenges facing the community. The common thread in is the emergence theory, that it’s in social dialogue that possible solutions to complex problems emerge. This is the central thinking – the DNA - of the ALC Program. The Zambia Summit was an “imbizo” to discuss leadership challenges facing those involved in climate change. It was embedded in the “Harambee” spirit, calling on participants to be “pulling together” or “working
or exploring together” to see what possible ideas or solutions would emerge for social good or
communal good.
The Summit was the first under the ALC Program. (The other two programs are the Africa Leadership
Capacity Building (ALCB) and the Africa New Science of Leadership (ANSL) Journal and Annual
Conference).
The Zambia Summit was designed as a leadership transformation conversation with the goal of
creating a new context, listening for new possibilities and generating effective actions. It was
premised on the fact that nobody knows what the future will look like; this requires leaders to
create new futures, not past-based futures that end up giving us more of the same or business-as-
usual approaches. In view of this, the Summit explored the question:
“How can we create a future in which the climate change concerns of everyone are honored and
cared for?”
The success of the Summit encouraged the ALT Foundation to strengthen the ALC Program. In
Zambia, follow-up conversations on climate change are planned; the most urgent being a proposed
“imbizo” to create a shared future for Zambia. The “imbizo” will bring together leaders of
Zambia’s diverse stakeholder groups representing government, business, education, agriculture,
media and economic development to address some of the country’s major challenges and in
particular how the country can develop climate-smart innovations for the future.
Two other Africa-focused “imbizos’ are planned. The first is the African Agriculture Leadership
Transformation (AALT) and the second is African Youth Employment Transformation (AYET).
With regard to the AALT, the ALT Foundation is inspired by the African Union’s vision of Agenda
2063. The question we are asking under the AALT is:
“What transformation is required by leaders in Africa’s agricultural sector to be able to
eliminate hunger and reduce poverty by raising economic growth through agriculture-led
development?”
The second conversation of youth employment asks a similar question:
“Imagine it’s now 2064. Africa largely succeeded in creating jobs for its youth and
entrepreneurship is thriving. Innovation, youth employment and equity helped Africa
’grow differently.’ What transformation took place among Africa’s leadership to enable
this?”Like any successful “imbizo,” numerous players are involved, from grassroot communities,
activists, Community-Based Organizations (CBOs), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs),
universities and other institutions of higher learning, national and provincial governments, the
public, private sector institutions and donors. We are reaching out to you: come let’s join hands
and make Africa work for all!
Top 10 Outcomes of Zambia Climate Leadership Transformation (ZCLT) Summit
Climate Leadership:
1. The issue of an unknown, uncertain future calls for leaders and leadership – especially in
climate change - that will help the country create a future that would not be possible
unless it is created.
2. The most critical leadership issue facing Zambia today is water and food insecurity. Rain
and floods bring devastation and disease; when the rains fail, drought affects food security.
3. Leadership should be about empowering others and including more youth and women in
the climate transformation conversation.
4. Leadership should be devolved, so that the people – especially in rural areas - are
engaged in issues of climate change and COVID-19. This will create appropriate, localized
and cost-effective solutions that are beneficial to the people.
Youth and Climate Change:
1. Zambia should develop youth-driven policies which will let youth take up roles in
climate change; the youth should be involved at all stages of policy development,
planning and implementation.
2. The youth don’t know everything, they need the wisdom of the older people.
Intergenerational support is needed to help youth have the skills that will be needed
for transformative leadership and also behavioral change that will benefit the country.
3. Zambia needs to integrate climate change awareness in the education sector.
Women and Climate Change
1. Create more access to education for girls and provide education that helps them
understand the issues of climate change.
2. Include women in leadership and decision-making, as they are among the most-affected
and also users of particular resources that contribute to climate change, such as firewood
and charcoal in the rural areas.
3. Government needs to make resources available, so women have access to the ‘levers and
dials’ of effecting change, but women also need to be proactive in getting the resources
they need to address climate change.The vision of the Africa Leadership Transformation (ALT) Foundation is to transform leadership as the
key to an Africa that works for everyone. This vision is achieved in partnership with numerous
stakeholders, and particularly African universities with whom we offer transformative leadership training
and programs designed to create at least 1 million leaders in 10 African countries in the next 10 years
(2020-30)
The Foundation has three intricately related programs, all designed to achieve the vision of transforming
leadership as the key to an Africa that works for everyone. The three programs are:
Africa Leadership Africa Transformative Africa New Science of
Capacity Building Leadership Leadership Journal
(ALCB): Conversations (ATLC): (NSLJ)
This is the Foundation’s flagship The goal of this program is to This program will network
program. Under this program, design or re-design Africans involved in leadership
we partner with African conversations that create the transformation through:
universities to make possibility of reinventing a) A bi-annual publication
accessible the Being A Leader leadership and inventing new focusing on how leadership
and The Effective Exercise of possibilities in select African transformation is being
Leadership: An public-interest conversations. expressed in different ways, and
Ontological/Phenomenological b) An annual conference,
Course and the Creating Course The ALT Foundation and its based on some of the key topics
Leaders (CCL). partners are committed to covered in the journal.
exploring possibilities that have
The ALCB Program is also not previously been considered
exploring targeted leadership by policy makers, academia,
programs for African climate politicians, NGOs and civil
change, women and the youth. society.
For more details: www.altfoundation.africa
or write: dkamanga@altfoundation.africaYou can also read
